Sign in Subscribe

Big Ideas

Les Misérables - Victor Hugo’s revolutions and digressions

Les Misérables - Victor Hugo’s revolutions and digressions

Stanley Hardy About one thousand pages into Les Misérables, Victor Hugo disrupts the main narrative to ask a question: ‘What constitutes an emeute, a riot?’ He then proceeds to answer that question: ‘Nothing and everything. An electricity gradually released, a flame suddenly leaping forth, a drifting force, a passing wind.

Do the positives of democracy outweigh the negatives?

Do the positives of democracy outweigh the negatives?

Marcus Jamnadas-Khoda Democracy dates back thousands of years. Believed to have begun in the city-state of Athens by Cleisthenes, [1] it originally comes from two Greek words: the word ‘demos’ meaning people, and the word ‘kratos’ meaning power. Therefore, democracy can be thought of as ‘power to the people’ – a

Do we still live in a time of political populism?

Do we still live in a time of political populism?

Anika Khanna What happens when people feel their voices are not being heard by the political and economic elites? The answer, it seems, is political populism. In recent years, we have seen a growing number of political movements that claim to represent the interests of regular people against the established

What is the Euro’s most fundamental problem?

What is the Euro’s most fundamental problem?

Jack Downey The Euro was established in 1999, with 11 countries adopting the single currency. Now, the Euro is the currency of 20 European Union states known as the Eurozone. Superficially, the increased membership of the Eurozone suggests that the single currency has been successful. However, the Eurozone continues to

Do robots reduce wages?

Do robots reduce wages?

Will Merritt Since the 1950s, when the first industrial robots were used in manufacturing processes, robotics and automation in the workplace has continued to increase across almost every industry sector. Such advancements have changed, and continue to change, the employment landscape, improving efficiency, safety, productivity and quality. However, while such

Blood in the water – Revolution and Melbourne ‘56

Blood in the water – Revolution and Melbourne ‘56

Jacob Corne Sport and politics - a compelling relationship. Qatar most recently grasped the opportunity to accentuate this belief. Football’s illustrious finale, only months ago, was masked by the thousands of migrant workers who watched from six feet under. Judiciously viewed, one of the game’s greatest showdowns was

Should the UK government cut spending in order to reduce national debt?

Should the UK government cut spending in order to reduce national debt?

Chloe Po Over the past 24 years (1997/98 to 2020/21), UK national debt has increased by six times from 349.9 billion pounds to 2.1 trillion pounds. With such a significant increase in national debt, the financial position of the UK government cannot be claimed as healthy